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A red Ford GT40 Mark IV raced to victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans 45 years ago, piloted by A.J. Foyt and Dan Gurney for Shelby American. The year 1967 marked the second of four consecutive years in which an American-built car powered by an American engine driven by American drivers racing for an American team won the famous race — a feat that has never been repeated.
The iconic race car recently left its home at the Henry Ford Museum for a European tour to commemorate the 45th anniversary of the win and this year’s 24 Hour of Le Mans race. The Mark IV will make an appearance at the Goodwood Festival of Speed before returning home to Michigan in September.

“It was a very sophisticated chassis, but not a very sophisticated engine,” said Bob Casey, curator of transportation for The Henry Ford, in a press release. “The engine they used, a big 427 Ford V-8, was based on their NASCAR engine.”

Despite the big engine’s humble roots, it propelled the race car to speeds as fast as 220 mph thanks to its high-tech aluminum honeycomb structure, low seating position, and wind-tunnel tested aerodynamics — including the “Gurney bubble” added to clear the 6-foot 4-inch tall racer’s head. The two-man team led all but the first 90 minutes of the 24-hour endurance race beating the second-place Ferrari by four laps.

Just two weeks prior to the 1967 24 Hour of Le Mans race, Gurney and Foyt competed against each other at the Indianapolis 500.

“It’s a wonderful story about teamwork, it’s a great story about collaboration, and foremost, it’s a great story about the process of innovation, all through the lens of American racing,” said Christian Overland, executive vice president of The Henry Ford, in a release.

Buy an original GT40

Only 133 GT40s were built between 1966 and 1969, but in the RM Auctions upcoming Monterey sale beginning August 17, two original Ford GT40s will be featured — chassis P/1059, a 1967 Mark I and chassis P/1074, a 1968 Gulf/Mirage lightweight racer.

The 1967 Mark I is a numbers-matching, two-owner car that’s said to be one of the most original GT40s left while the other GT40 was raced in 1968 before becoming the camera car for Steve McQueen’s film, “Le Mans.”

The Aston Martin DBR1 driven to victory in the 1959 24 Hour of Le Mans by Carroll Shelby and Roy Salvadori, is returning to the Circuit de la Sarthe, France this weekend as a tribute to the two drivers as well as to the car’s chief engineer Ted Cutting.

“We were deeply saddened by the loss of Carroll, Roy and Ted,” said David King, Aston Martin’s head of motorsport, in a release. “They all played a hugely important role in Aston Martin’s racing history and will forever remain part of the company’s heritage. To mark their passing, we felt it fitting to return their car to the scene of its greatest victory.”

The Le Mans winning DBR1 will be on display this week during the Le Mans race.